A 26-year-old Inverness man who gave police a false name and address was ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid community work yesterday.
Ricky O’Connell, of 30 Carnarc Crescent, was detained by police in relation to drugs offences and told officers he was Keith Reilly from Dublin.
At an earlier hearing when sentence was deferred for a background report, fiscal depute Michelle Molley told Inverness Sheriff Court that O’Connell confirmed this information from the dock the following day on April 14.
However further police enquiries revealed his true identity and O’Connell admitted attempting to pervert the course of justice. He also pleaded guilty to a breach of the peace by his abusive behaviour towards door stewards in Inverness on February 27.
Defence agent Claire Russell told the court that her client had been drinking heavily that night, something which he was not used to.,
“When arrested, he panicked because he had aspirations to move to Australia to work and he knew a criminal conviction would cause him problems.
“Then he made the terribly stupid decision to confirm the wrong name in court.”
A teenage driver was worried that his car may be damaged if he left in Inverness city centre overnight so he decided to move it to a nearby car park.
But 19-year-old Hamish Stoddart, 22 Glenlia, Foyers, had been drinking and when police stopped him on suspicion of drunk driving through the city in the early hours of April 17, he was almost four times the legal limit.
Yesterday at Inverness Sheriff Court, Stoddart, who it was said had lost his job as a result, admitted driving with excess alcohol, was fined £300 and banned from driving for a year.
A 38-year-old domestic abuse victim who attacked her partner with a knife was shown mercy by a Sheriff yesterday.
Gollanfield woman Heather Jackman, described as a Grampian prisoner, appeared from custody at Inverness Sheriff Court yesterday as she is currently serving a sentence for a number of drink-related offences.
She admitted assaulting Ladislav Hafera on January 24, 2015 by repeatedly striking him on the head with a knife to his injury.
Her lawyer, John MacColl told Sheriff Margaret Neilson: “She was in a dreadful relationship with a man and suffered abuse for many years.
“Her victim actually wrote to the asking why she had pled guilty adding that he got what he deserved. She is currently serving a sentence and her earliest release date is September 6. Then she intends to go back to Boston and start a new life.
“I would ask the court to show her a degree of leniency in the circumstances.”
Fining Jackman £500 with no time to pay, the alternative of 28 days imprisonment will not impact on her release date.
Sheriff Neilson told her: “I hope that when you are released you will be able to put everything behind you.”
